My f*cking transmission is gone.

Last week my brother drove my car and told me that it barely accelerated when he put it into gear. I cringed at the news of that, because I knew what it meant. I took it to the dealer, they kept it for about four days. I get a call this morning, and...

$4000

to get it fixed.

Needless to say, I don't have 4 grand to sink into a car that's over 5 years old. So I went to pick it up today, unworked on, and parked it in my backyard.

Long story short, I'm gonna have to buy a new car very soon. Thank God my boyfriend is here and so I can take his car to work.

Wow cat I totally feel you. Same thing happened to me years ago, but i wound up buying a fabulous car that i absolutely loved. Then a druggie hit it and totaled it even though it only had 68,000 miles on it.

last month i bought a 2012 mustang that i wanted for a year and a flashflood picked it up and carried it away while i was driving. The insurance is working on it, but it is just the aggravation of having to deal with it all.

I totally understand!

Wow that sucks, i feel bad for both of you gals.

What kind if car is it? Yeah.....when the tranny goes, its pretty much all she wrote. There is no point in fixing it if its not worth it unless you can get someone to fix it for an extremely discounted rate. The major reason why it costs so much is because of the labor. Take that 4 grand a buy a new car.

Thanks wants2laugh and cheaps. What sucks is that my warranty expired a year ago, so now to get my car (which is only six years old) fixed, I have to shell out four grand???

This is what I feared.


**sigh**

Nystyle709 wrote:What kind if car is it? Yeah.....when the tranny goes, its pretty much all she wrote. There is no point in fixing it if its not worth it unless you can get someone to fix it for an extremely discounted rate. The major reason why it costs so much is because of the labor. Take that 4 grand a buy a new car.

It's a '05 Chevy Cobalt.

You're right, I'll never spend 4 grand on a new transmission for an old car. I can use that same money to make a down payment on a new one, which I what I intend to do. But dammit, it's not like I just have 4 grand casually laying in my purse either.

What about a re-built transmission but not from the dealership? Dealer's tend to charge a lot more than a standard transmission place.

wants2laugh wrote:Wow cat I totally feel you. Same thing happened to me years ago, but i wound up buying a fabulous car that i absolutely loved. Then a druggie hit it and totaled it even though it only had 68,000 miles on it.

last month i bought a 2012 mustang that i wanted for a year and a flashflood picked it up and carried it away while i was driving. The insurance is working on it, but it is just the aggravation of having to deal with it all.

I totally understand!

While you were driving???? That must have been pretty scary, how did you get out?

With the price of cars, if your car has low miles, you may be better off getting it fixed.

What terrible timing for this to happen to you with your little one almost here.

CatEyes10736 wrote:

Nystyle709 wrote:What kind if car is it? Yeah.....when the tranny goes, its pretty much all she wrote. There is no point in fixing it if its not worth it unless you can get someone to fix it for an extremely discounted rate. The major reason why it costs so much is because of the labor. Take that 4 grand a buy a new car.

It's a '05 Chevy Cobalt.

You're right, I'll never spend 4 grand on a new transmission for an old car. I can use that same money to make a down payment on a new one, which I what I intend to do. But dammit, it's not like I just have 4 grand casually laying in my purse either.

Here's another solution: tell your BF to piss off and you take possession of his car until you full and well ready to get a new one. Car problem solved.

Tony I'm considering looking into that as well, but I have a feeling that a transmission place won't knock a significant amount off money off of the figure the dealer is quoting...and then how long before that one eventually goes out on me too? I guess I have some choices to make and very soon, because I can't be without a car. My boyfriend and I live together and while I can drive his car, our work schedules aren't always compatible.

Nystyle709 wrote:

CatEyes10736 wrote:
It's a '05 Chevy Cobalt.

You're right, I'll never spend 4 grand on a new transmission for an old car. I can use that same money to make a down payment on a new one, which I what I intend to do. But dammit, it's not like I just have 4 grand casually laying in my purse either.

Here's another solution: tell your BF to piss off and you take possession of his car until you full and well ready to get a new one. Car problem solved.

Yeah I don't know if I can get away with a stunt like that. He'd be awfully amused at the attempt though.

Tony Marino wrote:What about a re-built transmission but not from the dealership? Dealer's tend to charge a lot more than a standard transmission place.

This is as another option too. Thats why I said you should try and see if you can get it fixed for much less cat. You just need for your car to run until you can get new one. If you can put something reasonable towards a car repair and you can putt putt around for a little while longer......it will help.

CatEyes10736 wrote:Tony I'm considering looking into that as well, but I have a feeling that a transmission place won't knock a significant amount off money off of the figure the dealer is quoting...and then how long before that one eventually goes out of me too? I guess I have some choices to make and very soon, because I can't be without a car. My boyfriend and I live together and while I can drive his car, our work schedules aren't always compatible.

I would look into it anyways, you never know. Usually they back them with some kind of warranty. Poor lil Mama I feel bad for you, so close to baby coming

Yes Red, the timing is really awful. This is a hassle I wasn't anticipating at all. My car had a habit of acting funny, but usually over minor shit that was easily fixed. This came out of nowhere.

Tony, you're right. I most definitely am going to explore that option. If I can find a transmission place that will work with me for no more than $1500, then that would be great. But if all they can do is knock off a few hundred less than what the dealer is wanting, then that's not practical enough.

I agree with Tony, Cat. Definitely look into a transmission place for an alternative before you decide to pluck money down on a new car. You will still have to buy a new car probably sooner than later, but at least if you can get a rebuilt transmission, it can give you some wiggle room to make a more comfortable decision about getting a new vehicle.

Tony Marino wrote:

wants2laugh wrote:Wow cat I totally feel you. Same thing happened to me years ago, but i wound up buying a fabulous car that i absolutely loved. Then a druggie hit it and totaled it even though it only had 68,000 miles on it.

last month i bought a 2012 mustang that i wanted for a year and a flashflood picked it up and carried it away while i was driving. The insurance is working on it, but it is just the aggravation of having to deal with it all.

I totally understand!

While you were driving???? That must have been pretty scary, how did you get out?

Yep, was on my way to work. And the waters just came like a dam broke and it started floating until it hit something on the side of the road and stopped. The cop yelled to me to get out, and i was like "no way! its brand new and $40grand, f--- that! Im staying right here" Then he told me that i could just open the door cause the water wasnt that high. again i was like screw that. So i had to climb out the window. What was funny was i dropped the cell phone under the seat, but it has the bluetooth coming thru the radio which was still on. I said "Call Geico" and the car is saying "Call Alan, Call Gail, Call Mom" and i started screaming at the car! lol

I am so sorry to hear that Cat!

wants2laugh wrote:

Tony Marino wrote:

While you were driving???? That must have been pretty scary, how did you get out?

Yep, was on my way to work. And the waters just came like a dam broke and it started floating until it hit something on the side of the road and stopped. The cop yelled to me to get out, and i was like "no way! its brand new and $40grand, f--- that! Im staying right here" Then he told me that i could just open the door cause the water wasnt that high. again i was like screw that. So i had to climb out the window. What was funny was i dropped the cell phone under the seat, but it has the bluetooth coming thru the radio which was still on. I said "Call Geico" and the car is saying "Call Alan, Call Gail, Call Mom" and i started screaming at the car! lol

Wow that is some story!!!!!! The main thing is that you were o.k. and I can certainly understand the frustration with it being a new car I would have totally lost it!

Alan Smithee wrote:I am so sorry to hear that Cat!

Thank you Alan.

Ouch!!!! 4G's. Dealers ALWAYS give you the highest estimates. One time my brakes were going on my old car and I took it to the dealer and they said 800 dollars. Went to a mechanic my uncle knows and got it done for just a little over 200.

NEVER TRUST DEALER estimates!!!!

NEVER TRUST DEALER estimates!!!!

Amen to that. They are always crazy high. The downside to a local, smaller place, though, is that they all are not trustworthy people.

My friend who has lived in this city since birth hit a deer last week. He took the truck to the Ford dealership and I was trying to talk him into going to a smaller place run by our friend, who used to work at that Ford dealership. He won't do it. Anyway, I can't believe that my friend has lived here all his life and doesn't know a way to find a place, other than the big dealership, that he can trust.

I set up an appointment to take it to a local transmission shop not too far from my house tomorrow morning. Keeping my fingers crossed that they will give me some better news about having it repaired or replaced at a lower price.

good luck! its gotta be frustrating

Cat, have you thought about getting as much as you can for the car and leasing a new one? I don't know what kind of mileage you drive but you may be able to get something decent for low monthly payments. I've never leased so I don't know what the fine print might be.